Convertible chair and table



1967 s. E. B. SVENDSEN 3,

' CONVERTIBLE CHAIR AND TABLE Filed Jan. 15.' 1965 Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 HQ FIG. 5

' INVENTOR SVEND ERIK BJERREGAARD SVENDSEN ATTORNEYS s. E. B. SVENDSEN 3,352,602 CONVERTIBLE CHAIR AND TABLE- Nov. 14, 1967 Filed Jan. 15. 1965 2 Sheets-Shet 2 FIG. l5

FIG. H

" INVENTOR SVEND ERIK BJERREGAARD SVENDSEN ATTORN EYS United States Patent 3,352,602 CONVERTIBLE CHAIR AND TABLE Svend Erik Bjerregaard Svendsen, Kastruplundgade 22, Copenhagen, Espergaerde, Denmark Filed Jan. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 479,358 12 Claims. (Cl. 297-130) The invention relates to furniture, especially a piece of child furniture, a so-called high-chair, of the type that can be used in two positions and has a frame that, in the form of a unit, is adapted to be placed in two different positions on a base, the two positions preferably being staggered 90 in relation to each other, and to support a seat at a corner of the frame in each of the two positions, and furthermore, of the type that has a table-top corresponding to one of the positions.

Furniture of the type indicated is known from the Danish patent specifications No. 30,965 and 68,901, where a table-top is provided for the first, lowest position, while in the second, highest position the high-chair is used while placed adjacent a dinner table, the child in the high-chair using the dinner table-top. This is impractical, as the child is seated uncomfortably in relation to the dinner table, and as the child easily can considerably damage the dinner table.

The object of the invention is to devise a piece of furniture of the type indicated in which the mentioned drawbacks are remedied. This is obtained according to the invention, by the fact that the piece of furniture furthermore has a table-top for the other position, both tabletops being placed substantially in a side plane of the frame with one of the edges offset in relation to the corner in question, Where the seat is placed or can be placed. This piece of furniture may be employed at meals by placing it beside a dinner table. By these means the child has its own table-top during meals, but still is in company with the adults. The table-top is placed in a manner comfortable to the child, and only the childs things are placed on the table-top, and the dinner table will not be dirtied,

According to the invention, the two table-tops may be offset in relation to one and the same corner of the frame, and a seat that in a manner per se known is adapted to be placed in two positions, may be adapted to be placed in two such positions in both of which the front edge of the seat is directed away from the corner in question. By these means a simple and practical construction is obtained. The seat plate of the seat may, according to the invention be placed pivotable around an axis at its front edge, whereas the rear edge is suspended in a back rest of pliable material, both sides of the seat plate being formed as a seating surface. Such a seat is easy and cheap to produce, and the change-over from one position to the other is easy, and the construction may easily be made in such a manner that there is no danger of an accidental opening of the fastening members of the seat as the seat may be fixedly mounted at the front edge of the seat plate and the top edge of the back rest so that it is held securely.

The back rest may, according to the invention, be placed outside the plane of the second table-top in both positions. Hereby a good back rest for the child is obtained as will be seen in the drawings.

Some embodiments of a piece of furniture according to the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a first embodiment of a piece of child furniture, seen obliquely from in front and with the piece of furniture in a first position,

FIG. 2 a view of the high-chair in the same position seen from the side,

FIG. 3 the high-chair, seen from above,

FIG. 4 the high-chair in the second position, seen from the side,

FIG. 5 the high-chair in the position shown in FIG. 4, seen from the side,

FIG. 6 a seat for the high-chair,

FIG. 7 a back rest for the high-chair,

FIG. 8 a table-top for the high-chair, seen from below,

FIG. 9 a section on the line IX-IX in FIG. 8 and turned in such a manner that the upper side of the tabletop is turned upwards,

FIG. 10 a section through a corner assemblage in the high-chair,

FIG. 11 a foot rest for the high-chair,

FIG. 12 a view of another embodiment of the seat,

FIG. 13 a view of a third embodiment of the seat,

FIG. 14 a view of a fourth embodiment of the seat,

FIG. 15 a schematical section through a fifth embodiment of the high-chair, and

FIG. 16 a schematical section through a sixth embodiment of the high-chair.

The embodiment of the high-chair shown in FIGS. 1- 10 has a steel tube frame, two table-tops and a seat. The frame in the position shown in FIGS. 13 has two almost vertical lengths 1 and 2, two horizontal lengths 3 and 4, two oblique lengths 5 and 6, and a horizontal length connecting the upper ends of the lengths 5 and 6. To the upper ends of the lengths 1 and 2 there are connected short oblique lengths 8 and 9, to these, two horizontal lengths 10 and 11, to these, two vertical lengths 12 and 13, and these are connected by means of a horizontal length 14. A table-top 15 is suspended from the two lengths 10 and 11 and a table-top 16 is suspended from the two lengths 12 and 13. A seat with a seat plate 17 and a back rest 18 is placed on the two oblique lengths 5 and 6. The seat plate 17 may be substantially stiff, whereas the back rest 18 may be pliable, and the seat plate may be pivotable around an axis 19 and be swingably connected with the back rest 18 at an axis 20, and the back rest may be pivotable around an axis 21, By these means it is obtained that the seat may be turned over to the position shown in FIG. 4, the back rest being folded during this movement.

In the position shown in FIGS. 1-3 the seat plate 16 is placed relatively low, and the table-top 15 is placed at a suitable height for a child sitting on the seat. In the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 the seat plate is placed rather high, and the table-top 16 is preferably placed at such a height that it can project in over the table-top of an ordinary dinner table.

The table-tops 15 and 16 arep referably detachably arranged, and when the table-tops are not in place it will be possible to pile the frames as the lengths 1 and 2 are slightly inclined.

The seat plate 16 may be made as shown in FIG. 6. At its front edge there is placed a tube in which are placed a compression spring and two rods with outwardly projecting ends 22 and 23 that can be pressed inwards against the spring effect and which are brought into engagement with holes in the lengths 5 and 6. Towards the rear the seat plate has projections 24 and 25 with bearing holes. The back rest 17 may correspondingly be made as shown in FIG. 7. It may consist of two layers of pliable material that surround filling material. At the lower edge there is placed a tube with a compression spring and two rods with outwardly projecting ends 26 and 27 for engagement with the holes in the projections 24 and 25. At the top edge there is also a tube with a compression spring and two rods with outwardly projecting ends 28 and 29 for engagement with holes in the lengths 5 and 6 just beneath the length 7. The back rest may have transverse stitchings 30 for easing the bending of the back rest during the changeover of the seat from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the position shown in FIG. 4. The axes 19, 20 and 21 are thus formed by means of the rod ends 22, 23, 26, 27, 28 and 29. The seat plate 16 should be made with a seating surface on both sides.

At one end the table-top has, as shown in FIG. 8, projections 31 and 32, that form arm rests in the position shown in FIGS. 1-3. The table-top 16 has corresponding projections forming arm rests in the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. At its front edge the table-top 15 has lateral fittings 33 and 34 that are made for engaging under the lengths 10 and 11 and at a small distance therefrom other lateral fittings 35 and 36 that are adapted to engage over the lengths 10 and 11. At the rear the table-top has lateral fittings 37 and 38 corresponding to the fittings 35 and 36. When mounting the table-top the fittings 33 and 34 are edged down between the lengths 10 and 11 whereafter the table-top is swung down so that it is caused to abut with the fittings 35-38 against the top side of the lengths 10 and 11. The table-top 16 may be arranged in the same manner.

The extensions 31 and 32 and the corresponding extensions on the table-top 16 can be connected with each other by means of curved fittings 39 as shown in FIG. 10. These fittings may be fastened on one of the tabletops and may have suitable engagement members for engagement with corresponding engagement members on the other table-top so that assemblage and disassamblage is easy to carry out. The fittings may instead be fastened between the oblique lengths and 6 and the horizontal lengths and 11, so that hereby the frame is stiffened On the oblique lengths there may be placed adjustable clamping fittings40 and 41 that hold the ends of a rod 42'that can serve as a foot rest for the child in both the positions of the high-chair. Instead of a rod, a plate 43 may perhaps be used, which then should be swingable between two positions.

In FIG. 12 another embodiment of a seat is employed, namely a stiff seat construction with a seat plate 44 and a back rest 45. The seat plate and the back rest each have hooks 46 and 47 respectively with which the seat may be hooked fast on transverse rods between the oblique lengths 5 and 6. The seat can be lifted off and be placed in the reverse position corresponidng to the other position of the high-chair as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 there is used a seat with a stiff seat construction consisting of a seat plate 48 and a back rest 49. The seat construction is swingably arranged on the lengths 5 and 6 with an axis 50 so that it may be swung into the position shown with dotted lines.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 14 a seat plate 51 is used which is swingably arranged on the lengths 5 and 6 with an axis 52 and at the rear edge of which there are two hinge axes 53 and 54 for two back rests 55 and 56. By these means a change-over of the seat to the two positions of the high-chair may easily be carried out.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. a seat construetion consisting of three plates 57, 58 and 59 is employed. In the shown position 57 forms the seat plate while 58 forms the back rest. By swinging the high-chair to the other position corresponding to FIGS. 4 and 5 58 serves as seat plate while 59 serves as back rest. The steel tube frame will in this connection preferably have another shape than in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-5.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 16 a seat is arranged at one end of the frame which consists of a seat plate 60 and a back rest 61. At the other end there is placed a seat plate 62 that is used when the high-chair is disposed in the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a portion of the tabletop 15 serving as a back rest.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 15 and 16 no alteration of the seat or the seats is to be C d 0 i 1 .6 6 h g chair is changed over.

The shown and described embodiments are only to be considered by way of examples as diiferent variations are conceivable within the scope of the invention. The shown furniture can thus relatively easily be made in such a manthan for use by children, for example for use in classrooms or as garden furniture.

As seat for the embodiment in FIGS. 1-5 a long fiat bag may be employed which bag is foam laminated on the inside, and in the bottom half of which there is placed a stiff plate. This seat can be used instead of the one shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 and it may be suspended and employed in a similar manner. On the oblique lengths 5 and 6 the ends of a security belt may be fastened. If the belt slides upward or downward it will only. tense more and there will therefore notbe any danger for the child to fall out.

What I claim is: V

1. An article of furniture comprising a pair of substantially fiat table-tops respectively situated substantially in mutually perpendicular planes which intersect each other at a given line, said table'tops respectively having edge portions spaced from said line of intersection and said table-tops respectively extending from said edge portions thereof away from said line of intersection, a seat situated in the region of said line of intersection between said edge portions of said table-tops and having a seat plate and a brackrest, and'frame means for carrying said tabletops and seat and for supporting said table-tops in one position where one table-top is vertical and the other horizontal and in a second position where the other tabletop is vertical and said one table-top is horizontal and for supporting said seat with said seat plate thereof substantially parallel to and at an elevation lower than whichever table-top is in a horizontal position and with said backrest extending upwardly from said seat plate at a portion thereof distant from whichever table-top is horizontal.

2. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said frame means is oper-atively connected with said seat in both of the positions of said table-tops at a front edge of said seat plate which is distant from said backrest and at an upper edge of said backrest which is distant from said seat plate. 7

3. The combination of claim 2 and wherein said seat plate is relatively rigid while said backrest is flexible, said seat plate having at its edge distant from said backrest a hinged connection with said frame means.

4. The combination of claim 1 wherein said frame means has a portion situated substantially in a plane which bisects said planes in which said table-tops are respectively located, and said portion of said frame means which is in said bisecting plane being operatively connected with said seat for supporting the latter.

5. The combination of claim 1 and wherein in both of said positions of said table-tops said backrest is situa'ted at a side of the plane which contains the vertical table-top opposite from that side thereof where the horizontal table-top is located. 7

6. The combination of claim 5 and wherein in both positions of said table-tops said seat extends through the plane which contains the vertical table-top over said edge portion thereof.

7. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said frame means has a portion situated in a plane bisecting said planes in which said table-tops are respectively located and operatively connected with said seat for supporting the latter, and a footrest adjustably carried by said frame means at said portion in said bisecting plane.

8. The combination of claim 1 and wherein one of said table-tops is removable from said frame means and said frame means having opposed to the part thereof which carries the latter table-top an elongated portion narrower than said latter part thereof so that upon removal of said latter table-top a plurality of said frames may be stacked.

9. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said frame means is composed of a series of rod lengths situated one after the other and forming extensions of each other and providing said frame means with an endless rod configuration, said frame means including a first pair of parallel rod lengths carrying one of said table-tops and a second pair of parallel rod lengths carry in the other of said table-tops and being perpendicular to and extending from first pair of rod lengths, said frame means including distant from said second pair of rod lengths and connected to said first pair of rod lengths a third pair of rod lengths parallel to said second pair of rod lengths and extending from said first pair of rod lengths to form at least part of a support for supporting said tabletop carried by said first pair of rod lengths in a vertical position, and said frame means including a fourth pair of parallel rod lengths extending from ends of said third pair of rod lengths distant from said first pair of rod lengths toward said second pair of rod lengths, and said fourth pair of rod lengths having a pair of parallel extensions situated in a plane bisecting the planes in which said table-tops are respectively located and extending through said line of intersection, said frame means having at a side of said line of intersection opposed from said third pair of rod lengths a first transverse rod length interconnecting the rod lengths which extend in said bisecting plane and said frame means including a second transverse rod length interconnecting ends of said second pair of rod lengths which are distant from said first pair of rod lengths.

10. The combination of claim 9 and wherein said rod length extensions which are situated in said bisecting plane extend between said first pair of rod lengths.

11. The combination of claim 10 and wherein said fourth pair of rod lengths and said second transverse rod length support said one table-top in a horizontal position and said other table-top in a vertical position while said third pair of rod lengths support said one table-top in a vertical position and said other table-top in a horizontal position.

12. The combination of claim 11 and wherein said first pair of rod lengths are longer than said second and third pairs of rod lengths and said second'and third pairs of rod lengths of substantially equal lengths so that when said frame means rests on said third pair of rod lengths said other table-top is situated at an elevation higher than said one table-top When said frame means rests on said second transverse rod length and said fourth pair of rod lengths.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,025,422 5/1912 Peters 297-1 X 1,068,593 7/1913 Koch 297-149 1,256,936 2/1918 Shaver 297-149 1,283,225 8/1918 Lea 297-149 1,450,397 4/1923 Weber 297-1 1,568,419 1/ 1926 Rossborough 297-1 2,494,045 1/ 1950 Kauifman 2971 X 2,991,122 7/1961 Boo 297-3 3,020,085 2/1962 Russell 297-153 3,083,053 3/1963 Dorsey 297-153 3,121,587 2/1964 Bau-aro 297-1 FOREIGN PATENTS 661,655 7/ 1929 France.

3,938 1888 Great Britain.

JAMES T. MCCALL, Primary Examiner. FRANK B. SHERRY, Examiner. 

1. AN ARTICLE OF FURNITURE COMPRISING A PAIR OF SUBSTANTIALY FLAT TABLE-TOPS RESPECTIVELY SITUATED SUBSTANTIALLY IN MUTUALLY PERPENDICULAR PLANES WHICH INTERSECT EACH OTHER AT A GIVEN LINE, SAID TABLE-TOPS RESPECTIVELY HAVING EDGE PORTIONS SPACED FROM SAID LINE OF INTERSECTION AND SAID TABLE-TOPS RESPECTIVELY EXTENDING FROM SAID EDGE PORTIONS THEREOF AWAY FROM SAID LINE OF INTERSECTION, A SEAT SITUATED IN THE REGION OF SAID LINE OF INTERSECTION BETWEEN SAID EDGE PORTIONS OF SAID TABLE-TOPS AND HAVING A SEAT PLATE AND A BRACKREST, AND FRAME MEANS FOR CARRYING SAID TABLETOPS AND SEAT AND FOR SUPPORTING SAID TABLE-TOPS IN ONE POSITION WHERE ONE TABLE-TOP IS VERTICAL AND THE OTHER HORIZONTAL AND IN A SECOND POSITION WHERE THE OTHER TABLETOP IS VERTICAL AND SAID ONE TABLE-TOP IN HORIZONTAL AND FOR SUPPORTING SAID SEAT WITH SAID SEAT PLATE THEREOF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO AND AT AN ELEVATION LOWER THAN WHICHEVER TABLE-TOP IS IN A HORIZONTAL POSITION AND WITH SAID BACKREST EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM SAID SEAT PLATE AT A PORTION THEREOF DISTANCE FROM WHICHEVER TABLE-TOP IS HORIZONTAL. 